


A Gathering

by PlanetClare



Category: Avengers (Comics), Black Widow (Comics), Captain America (Comics), Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types, Marvel, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Winter Soldier (Comics)
Genre: Aggression, Anxiety, Assassin - Freeform, Conflict, F/M, Friendship, Latveria (Marvel), Longing, Marvel Universe, Redemption, Self-Doubt, Sokovia (Marvel), Spies & Secret Agents, Threats of Violence, Victor Von Doom - Freeform, winterwidow - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-23
Updated: 2018-11-29
Packaged: 2019-07-01 15:09:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15776589
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PlanetClare/pseuds/PlanetClare
Summary: Bucky Barnes accepts an invitation in spite of his apprehension. He and Sam Wilson engage in their usual sniping.





	1. Chapter 1

Bucky’s cell phone buzzed on the nightstand to the left of Natasha’s bed. He quickly looked over at the glowing screen and then up at Natasha.

“Don’t you dare answer that, James,” she advised after a sharp laugh.

“I’m not,” he declared with a boyish grin.

The cell phone buzzed again, and Bucky once again glanced at it.

“James, I said don’t answer that,” Natasha reiterated staring down at him with her riveting green eyes.

“I wasn’t going to,” he promised.

When the phone buzzed a third time, Bucky looked at it and said, “It’s Steve.” Picking up his phone, he spoke.

“Hello?”

“Hey, pal! How are ya?” Steve asked cheerfully.

“Good. What’s up?”

“Is Natasha with you? I’ve been trying to reach her, but I think her phone is turned off,” said Steve.

Looking up at her, Bucky replied, “Yeah, she’s here.”

“Oh, could you – ”

“OUCH! Zebra! ZEBRA!” Bucky yelled.

“...‘Zebra’?” Steve wondered aloud.

“Sorry...It’s a safe word…” admitted Bucky breathlessly.

After a moment of thought, Steve realized, “Oh, my...are you guys...I’ll call back!”

“No, you’re good. What’s up?” he asked again as Natasha rolled over and lay next to him in bed.

Steve momentarily lost his train of thought as he tried to imagine what would elicit the safe word “zebra.”

“Uh...yeah...I...uh...wanted to ask her to come to the compound today,” he managed to say as he listened to Natasha laughing hysterically in the background.

“Will you stop?” Bucky asked.

“What?” wondered Steve.

“Oh, not you, pal. Okay, I’ll tell her,” he said.

“I want you to come, too,” Steve added still thinking about zebras.

“Oh...well...okay,” he agreed with reservations. “It’s about 3 o’clock now, so...say in about an hour?”

“Yeah, that’s fine.”

“See you then,” said Bucky before ending the call.

“What did Steve want?” Natasha asked.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, Bucky replied, “He wants us to go to the compound. Didn’t say why.”

“Hmm...,” she pondered. “Well, we better get going then.”

The two rose and walked to the bathroom. She turned on the water in the shower and smiled up at him as he entered it first. They kissed as the steam enveloped them.

* * * * * *

As Bucky dressed, Natasha sat at her vanity and brushed her long red hair.

“You should pack your duffle bag,” she suggested.

“Oh, yeah? Why?” he asked curiously.

“Well, if we’re going to the compound this late in the day, we might as well stay the night.”

Bucky thought about it for several moments before reaching into Natasha’s closet and pulling out his duffle bag.

Previously, Bucky was not welcome at the Avengers’ compound. Undeterred, to gain access at night, he hacked into Tony Stark’s artificial intelligence assistant, Friday, and shut down her detection system. Steve was the only one who knew that Bucky sometimes spent the night in Natasha’s room and then sneaked out before any other Avengers awoke the following morning.

* * * * * *

Bucky sat slumped in the passenger's seat as Natasha steered her blue classic Mustang through traffic. Wearing a black t-shirt, jeans and a long black coat, he stared anxiously out the window. Spreading his legs, he slumped a bit further down in the seat as his neck-length dark hair obscured half of his face.

Noticing his sullen posture, Natasha asked, "You're very quiet. What's going on?"

After a moment, the soldier replied unconvincingly, “Nothing.”

“Come on. It’s me you’re talking to. What’s up?”

Bucky sighed and said, “I’m not really welcome there, you know?”

“I thought you and Tony called a truce.”

“We did...kind of,” he replied without looking at her.

“Well?” she pressed.

“It’s the others I’m worried about.”

“I’m sure everything will be fine, James. Besides, Steve and I will be there, so you won’t be facing them alone.”

Bucky was not reassured but appreciated her support nonetheless.

When the car reached the front gate of the compound, Natasha rolled down her window and looked at the camera on the call box.

“Good afternoon, Agent Romanov.”

“Hello, Friday,” she replied to Tony Stark’s artificial intelligence assistant which not only controlled applications in the compound and his lab but also controlled his Iron Man technology.

Natasha looked at Bucky and then smacked his left thigh with the back of her right hand.

Turning his head to look at her, he sat up straight, leaned forward, and looked at the call box.

“Welcome, Sergeant Barnes.”

“It’s Bucky,” he advised before slumping back down in the seat.

Friday activated the gate which slowly opened to allow the car to enter. Natasha guided it to the underground garage and parked near a few of Tony’s sports cars and Steve’s motorcycle.

As the two exited the car, Bucky lifted their bags off of the back seat and followed Natasha as she led the way to the elevator.

“Living quarters,” she requested when the doors closed, and when the elevator stopped, Friday announced it.

“Second floor – living quarters, Agent Romanov and Sergeant Barnes.”

“Thank you, Friday,” she said before stepping from the elevator and leading the way to the Avengers’ commons area.

Bucky had stepped out of the elevator and into this area many times after hacking into Friday and temporarily disabling its facial recognition and detection protocol. He knew the entire floor plan and the path to Natasha’s room which he had taken numerous times late at night.

On those occasions, Natasha sometimes quietly entered Steve’s room to take a clean shirt and pants for Bucky to wear when he left. If Steve was awake and noticed her, they never spoke; she simply winked at him and he smiled back.

As Bucky and Natasha entered the commons area, he placed their bags on the carpet next to a burgundy colored club chair. Looking to their left, they saw Avengers Sam Wilson and Clint Barton sitting at a table playing chess.

“Hey, fellas!” Natasha called as she and Bucky approached them.

“There you are, Nat!” Sam exclaimed. “Barnes,” was all he said to Bucky with a slight chin lift.

“Hey, Nat,” said Clint as he sat contemplating his next move. “So, you brought Barnes, huh?” he said not glancing up.

“Yeah, Steve invited both of us,” she confirmed giving Bucky’s right hand a firm squeeze.

“What’s with the coat, player?” Sam queried.

Bristling at the comment, Bucky quipped, “Have you looked out the window today, Wilson? It’s cold outside.”

“Cold? Man, I thought you like the cold,” Sam said as he watched Clint begin to make a move and then stop.

“I’m not sure what would make you think that,” he remarked becoming agitated.

“All right, player. Don’t get your panties in a bunch. I just thought that since you lived in Siberia...”

Now, clearly annoyed, Bucky replied, “I didn’t ‘live’ in Siberia. I was kept there – against my will, I might add.”

“But it was still cold there,” Clint reminded him.

Bucky glared at Clint for a moment and then began to move his mouth as if he were speaking.

“Huh? What?” Clint asked as he tapped his ears. “What’d he say?”

“He didn’t say anything, man. He’s just messing with you,” advised Sam.

“Oh...I thought my hearing aids cut out,” Client replied staring up at Bucky who smirked before returning his attention to Sam.

“Let me ask you something, Sam. If someone held you against your will and pulled out all your teeth and fingernails with pliers, how would you feel the next time you saw pliers?”

Sam thought about it for a few moments.

“Okay, man. I feel you.”

“Right. I hate the freaking cold,” Bucky declared.

Looking down at the chess board, he then picked up one of Clint’s chess pieces.

“Hey!” the blonde archer yelped.

Bucky quickly moved a few pieces around the board and finally said to Sam, “Checkmate!”

“What?” he asked in disbelief.

“Hey! I won!” exclaimed Clint happily.

Staring at the board, Sam shook his head slowly from left to right. Finally, he looked up at Bucky and hissed, “I still hate you, man.”

“I know,” Bucky remarked and then winked at him.

“I won! I won!” Clint continued to cheer.

“That doesn’t count. He made those moves,” snapped Sam.

Sarcastically, Natasha quipped, “Well, I wouldn’t have missed this for the world.”

Walking back to join her, Bucky began to remove his coat.

“I didn’t come here for this crap,” he hissed at her.

“I know, I know,” she agreed putting her right hand on his left cheek to soothe him.

“Where’s Steve?” Bucky asked Clint and Sam.

“He’s in his office – on the phone with Tony,” Clint informed him.

Bucky immediately felt relieved to hear that the millionaire genius, Tony Stark, was not there.

“Come on, James,” Natasha said. “We can take our bags to my room.”

Just then, Steve strode into the commons with his jeans and grey t-shirt emphasizing his muscular build. He smiled broadly when he saw his friends and hugged each in turn.

“Buck! Natasha!” Glad you could both come,” he said cheerfully.

Bucky was glad to see his friend as they had not spoken in a few weeks.

“Thanks for the invite, pal,” Bucky replied.

“Oh, I see you brought bags,” Steve observed.

“I thought since we were coming, we’d spend the night,” said Natasha.

Steve blushed thinking about Bucky’s outburst, “Zebra!” while they were on the phone earlier.

“Great! Well, let me help you with the bags,” he offered.

“That’s okay. We’ve got them,” she said. Looking at Bucky, she suggested, “James, we can take these to my room.”

“I’ve got ‘em,” he said and then bent to pick up the bags.

Clint and Sam watched Bucky walk down the hallway which led to the bedrooms.

Without looking at his fellow Avenger, Clint asked Sam, “How does he know where the bedrooms are and – ”

“...and which one is hers?” Sam said completing the thought.

As the two wondered about Bucky, Steve asked Natasha, “So, how are you?”

Smiling, she replied, “Steve, I just saw you 2 days ago for a briefing.”

“I know. I mean how are you and Bucky?”

After a pause, she replied unconvincingly, “We’re good.”

“Why don’t I believe that?” remarked Steve.

Looking down the hall to ensure that Bucky was not returning, Natasha confessed, “He’s not sleeping well.”

“No?” Steve asked with concern. “Is it the usual stuff, or did something happen?”

Lowering her voice, she replied, “He went to see his sister the other day.”

“‘Becca? I thought he stopped going to see her!” a shocked Steve exclaimed. “Did you go with him?”

“Not this time. He didn’t tell me he was going, so I guess he just wanted to see her alone,” she said nodding as if agreeing with herself.

“Did he say how things went?”

“No. He didn’t want to talk about it and seemed pretty upset. I tried to console him, but then he abruptly left. I didn’t hear from him for a few days. Then, I went on a mission and when I returned, he was back at my place.”

“Did he say where he’d been?” Steve pressed.

“When he needs some space, he always goes to his apartment, wherever that is. He was in a better mood by then, but I could tell he still didn’t want to talk about it. So, I didn’t ask,” Natasha said with a shrug.

“Whenever he disappears, you need to tell me about it,” urged Steve. Thinking for a moment, he then suggested, “Maybe I should try talking to him.”

“That’s a thread you probably shouldn’t pull, Steve,” she advised.

After giving it some thought, Steve agreed, “Maybe you’re right.”

“And I don’t want him to know that I told you,” Natasha added.

“I’d never tell him. I just want to make sure he’s okay.”

Meanwhile, down the hall Bucky had placed the bags in Natasha’s bedroom. On his way out of the room, he froze in the doorway when he saw Wanda Maximoff walking toward him.

“Hello, Sergeant Barnes,” she said as she stopped to greet him.

Taking a step backward, he replied, “Bucky.”

“Sergeant Bucky,” the Sokovian beauty corrected herself.

“No – just call me ‘Bucky,’” he instructed.

“I didn’t know you were coming today. It’s nice to see you,” she said taking a step toward him.

Bucky took another step backward and replied, “Steve invited me to come with Nat.”

Wondering for a moment why the soldier kept maintaining the space between then, Wanda finally stated, “I’m reading an American book and on my way to the library for a dictionary. I’ll see you later, Sergeant – sorry...‘Bucky.’”

“Yeah...see ya,” he agreed and watched the auburn haired young woman walk down the hallway. He thought that her short black skirt and fitted white blouse gave her a school girl appearance. He recalled hearing that if she touched someone, she could put thoughts into that person’s mind. So, he had kept his distance not wishing to let anyone control his mind again.

Returning to the commons area, Bucky joined Steve and Natasha.

“So, why did you want to see us today?” he asked his best friend as the three sat on adjoining sofas.

“I haven’t seen you in a while, Buck, and just thought it’d be nice.”

“Oh...So, what happened to that motorcycle road trip that we talked about taking?”

“Well, you know the team’s been kind of busy lately, and my bike’s not running well these days,” Steve confessed.

“Yeah, I know Nat’s been gone a lot lately. What’s wrong with your bike?” Bucky asked.

“The engine’s been sputtering. I haven’t had time to figure out what’s up with it.”

“I told him to take it to a shop or have Tony look at it,” Sam interjected from the kitchen.

“I could have a look at it for you,” offered Bucky.

Looking skeptical, Clint asked, “So, you’re the ‘bike whisperer’ now?”

“Bucky’s always been good with machines,” Steve declared.

“Yeah, he keeps my Mustang running like new,” advised Natasha.

Sam considered making a joke about it being a good thing that Bucky was mechanically inclined, but he quickly thought better of it.

“How long before dinner?” Bucky wondered seemingly changing the subject.

“About 2 hours?” Steve asked Sam.

“More like ninety minutes, Cap,” he replied as he checked Clint’s roast in the over.

Bristling, Clint yelped, “Hey! Quit opening that door. You’ll throw off the temperature.”

“Calm down, princess,” Sam urged. “It’ll be fine.”

“I could take a quick look at your bike now, if you want,” offered Bucky.

“Sure!” his friend chirped.

“Boys, don’t go all ‘grease monkey’ before dinner. Ninety minutes isn’t that much time, you know,” advised Natasha.

“I might be able to tell what’s wrong with it by just listening to it,” Bucky suggested.

“That works for me!” Steve agreed. Turning to Natasha as the two rose from the sofas, he said, “We won’t be long.

With a smirk, she declared, “If you are, we’ll start dinner without you.”

Leading the way, Steve walked to the elevator and once both he and Bucky were inside and the door closed, he said, “Garage.”

“Thank you, Captain Rogers,” Friday replied before selecting the floor.

As the elevator began to move, Steve asked, “Have you been to the compound’s garage before today?”

Smiling, Bucky replied, “Not with ‘official authorization.’”

“Ooookay...” his friend replied trying not to laugh.

The two walked past a few of Tony Stark’s expensive vintage autos and approached Steve’s Harley which rested dutifully on its kickstand.

“Why don’t you start it up and let me hear it?” Bucky suggested.

“Sure,” agreed Steve as he straddled the bike. He started the engine and looked expectantly as his friend.

“Gun it!” Bucky yelled over the noise.

Steve followed his instructions and revved the engine and when Bucky dragged his index finger horizontally across his throat to indicate “kill it,” he turned off the engine.

“Well, what do you think?” he asked.

“Hmm...” Bucky thought. “Let me have a look at it. Have you got any tools?”

“Yeah, over there,” replied Steve climbing off the bike. As he brought a tool box over to his friend, he thought he’d seize the opportunity to talk to him while the two were alone.

“So, whatcha been up to lately, pal?” he asked as Bucky removed the cover on the bike’s engine.

“You know...the usual...some surveillance...some intel...you know the rule: I can’t tell you,” he reminded Steve without looking up at him.

Nodding, Steve agreed, “I know. You look a bit tired, though.”

“I’ve been busy...keeping late hours is all.”

“Oh...anything else going on?” Steve pried.

“What are you getting at, Steve?” Bucky asked wondering about his friend’s curiosity.

“Nothing! I just...you know, if you want to talk about something...anything...”

“Thanks, but I’m good,” he said while tinkering with the engine.

Not wanting to push his friend too hard or betray Natasha’s confidence, Steve thought it best to drop the subject.

“Looks like you’ve been taking good care of her,” Bucky observed as he continued to examine the engine. With his head lowered, his face was completely obscured by his long brown mane.

Scratching his head, Steve lamented, “It’s a pity I don’t have time to ride her much these days. Like you said – ”

“Yeah – busy,” Bucky agreed. “Seems not much has changed since our old army days. The world still needs saving.”

“Yeah, and it’s a good thing that there are still people willing to do it,” replied Steve.

“Why do you sound like an army recruitment commercial?” asked Bucky before erupting with laughter.

Blushing, Steve admitted, “You know me best, pal. That’s just the way I am.”

“Yeah, an all-American cornball,” his friend replied with a boyish grin that Steve had seen since they were kids back in Brooklyn.

Finally, Bucky said, “Get on and start it up.”

Steve smiled broadly when he turned the key and heard the difference.

“Wow! Thanks, pal! She’s purring like a kitten,” he exclaimed.

“It was just a slipped belt and a few loose bolts. She’s good now.”

“I owe ya one, Buck,” Steve said earnestly as he turned off the engine and dismounted the bike.

“You take that road trip with me, and I’ll call us even.”

“Roger that,” Steve agreed as he watched Bucky replace the cover of the engine.

Steve returned Tony’s tool box to a utility shelf while Bucky wiped his hands on a rag.

“You hungry?” Steve asked.

Responding quickly, Bucky remarked, “I could eat a horse!”

“We don’t have any horse, so Clint’s roast will have to do.”

“Ha ha,” Bucky replied flatly. “Come on. I better get washed up before Nat comes looking for me.”

As the two friends walked toward the elevator, Bucky wondered, “Do you think Stark would notice if I borrowed that red roadster over there?”

“Pal, you’d never get it out of the garage – not with Friday keeping an eye on things.”

“Oh, yeah?” Bucky asked skeptically. “I wouldn’t be so sure of that. I’m the guy who routinely hacked his way into this joint.”

“Well, if you want to live dangerously...” replied Steve.

As the two rode the elevator back to the living quarters, Bucky asked, “What do you think Stark had in mind with Friday?”

“‘Had in mind?’” Steve wondered. “You mean other than ‘His Girl Friday?’”

“No, I mean a blonde...brunette...red head...”

Pondering his friend’s question, Steve finally asked, “You mean if she were real?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, I don’t think Tony really has a type...” Steve replied blushing.

When the elevator doors opened onto the commons area, the two were met by the smell of food.

“Man, that roast is making my mouth water,” exclaimed Bucky. “Just washing my hands!” he called to Natasha while en route to her bathroom.

“Make it fast,” she said before calling Wanda’s room on the intercom.

Bucky froze mid-way down the hall when he saw the girl exit her room and begin striding toward him.

“You’re going the wrong way, Sergeant – I mean, Bucky. Natasha says dinner is ready.”

“Just need to...wash my hands,” the soldier advised with his unblinking large blue eyes fixed on her.

Wanda smiled sweetly and said, “I’ll see you there, then.”

He waited until the girl reached the end of the hall before proceeding to Natasha’s room and washing in her bathroom.

In the kitchen, Steve plated the roast and arranged vegetables around it on a pale green platter as Wanda set the dining table.

“Where’d an army guy like you learn how to do that, Cap?” Sam wondered.

With a wry smile, he replied, “My ma was often sick, so I’d help with the kitchen duties – not that we could ever afford a roast. It was good practice for the life of a bachelor.”

“Does Bucky cook, too?” asked Wanda out of curiosity and a desire to learn something about the mysterious young soldier.

“He can, but he really doesn’t like to,” he replied looking at Natasha for agreement. “He sure misses his ma’s cooking, though.”

“Oh, yeah?” Natasha asked intrigued.

“Yeah, my ma was a good Irish cook, but Bucky’s ma...her corned beef and cabbage was out of this world, and her soda bread was the talk of Brooklyn.”

Quietly to Steve, Natasha replied, “Thanks for sharing that. He’s rarely ever spoken of his mother to me. I know virtually nothing about his family other than a little about his sister Rebecca, and that’s only because he took me along once when he went to visit her at the Alzheimer’s home. It must be too painful for him.”

“It is,” he agreed. “Hydra took a lot from Bucky – his life...his family...everything he knew and loved.”

“Did people like him?” Wanda wondered.

“Who – Bucky? Oh yeah. Handsome, friendly, smart, polite, good at everything – everyone liked him, and he always looked out for me,” Steve said with his voice cracking at the end.

Signaling that Bucky was approaching, Sam interrupted, “Barnes, we were about to start without you.”

Steve and Natasha stared at each other hoping that Bucky had not heard them lamenting the hand that life had dealt him.

“All right already, Sam! I said I had to wash my hands,” he exclaimed. “Where do I sit?”

“Anywhere you want. We’re not formal here,” Steve replied.

As Bucky sat in a chair at the middle of the table, Sam said, “Except there. That’s my seat.”

Bucky stared at him for a moment before rising and moving to the next seat.

“He’s just messing with you, man,” Clint laughed.

“Yeah, that’s for beating me at chess, player,” Sam scolded him.

Bucky sighed and scowled at Sam.

“Guys! Knock it off,” Steve called from the kitchen.

“Calm down, Cap. We’re just having a laugh,” Sam replied.

“Not at his expense,” declared Steve with a stern look.

Steve then approached carrying the platter with the now carved roast and placed it on the dining table. He was followed by Natasha and Clint who carried the side dishes.

Sitting to Bucky’s right, Natasha placed her left hand on his right thigh and rubbed it lovingly. He kissed her left cheek to show his appreciation.

As Steve sat in the chair to Bucky’s left, he held out his hand to take his friend’s plate.

“Thanks for coming, Buck. We’re glad you’re here,” he said looking first at Sam and then at Clint.

Bucky gave Steve a shy smile and then looked down at the table, but he did not respond.

As if the head of a family, Steve served their guest first and then his fellow Avengers. The group settled down to enjoy the meal and chatted in between bites.

While the others found humor in recounting aspects of their past missions, Bucky sat quietly and listened. Frequently, Steve would ask his silent friend for his opinion and try to draw him into the conversation. However, feeling somewhat uncomfortable, Bucky kept his answers short and did not make eye contact. He did not work with the Avengers and was not accustomed to being around the group. His lack of interaction gave Sam and Clint the impression that the soldier was either not very bright or rather boring.

‘What does Nat see in that guy?’ both Sam and Clint wondered.

* * * * * *

When the group was finished eating, they began to clear the plates from the table.

“I’ll take your plate, James,” offered Natasha.

“No, I got it. It’s the least I can do after such a good meal,” he said as he took her plate and placed it on top of his. He walked to the kitchen and helped Steve load the dishwasher.

 

“Are you glad you came, Buck?” asked Steve.

“Yeah, I am,” he remarked deciding not to let Sam and Clint ruin his visit.

“Man, I feel like my stomach could explode,” Clint whined as he slowly approached the two.

“Well, you did pretty much inhale your dinner,” Steve joked.

“The hell I did!”

“Language!” Steve snapped.

“Sorry!” Clint replied sarcastically, “The heck I did.”

Walking past him on her way to the dishwasher, Wanda advised, “You did eat pretty fast, Clint.”

“You know what? I don’t even care. The food was good. So what?”

Steve shook his head and continued loading dishes as Clint began to put the leftovers in plastic containers.

“Who’s up for a game of Poker?” asked Sam from the living room.

“I’ll play,” chirped Bucky.

“Then come on, player, if you feel like losing everything but the shirt on your back,” the paratrooper said clapping his hands together once.

“I usually win,” Bucky advised with a sly smile.

“Not tonight, you won’t,” declared Sam.

“Oh, no! Don’t play with him,” Clint strongly urged Sam.

“Why not?”

“Barnes cheats,” stated the archer.

“I do not!” Bucky insisted fiercely.

“Then, why is it you never lose?” Clint asked accusingly.

Knitting his brows, Bucky replied, “I have a photographic memory. I remember every card that was played.”

“Counting cards – like I said, that’s cheating,” Clint concluded.

“Come on, Wanda. There’s way too much testosterone in here,” Natasha advised as she led the teen out of the kitchen and down the hallway toward their rooms. “Did you finish your book?” she asked.

“No, not yet. It slows me down when I have to look up words. My English is not as good as yours. I wish I had some books in Sokovian. Sometimes, I don’t understand Americans – the context, I mean,” Wanda replied with a smile.

“Yeah, I’m not sure I always understand Americans, either,” the Russian red head agreed as she looked over her shoulder at the bickering men. “I’ll be in my room if you need me,” she advised as the two women parted.

Back in the kitchen, the men were still arguing.

“Well, if we’re not playing Poker, I’m watching the game,” Sam said as he sat on one of the sofas and picked up the TV’s remote.

The huge flat screen suddenly came on and Sam selected the menu to scroll through the grid.

“Damn it! What channel is it on? I can’t find it,” he snapped.

“Language,” Steve said under his breath. “Which game?” he asked.

“The Knicks versus the Celtics. That’s on today, right?” Sam wondered becoming animated.

“Yeah, it is. Give me the controls. I’ll find it!” demanded Clint as he snatched the remote out of Sam’s hand.

When he switched the channel to the one airing the game, Sam exclaimed, “Great! It hasn’t started yet. You want to put some money on this ‘Katniss’?” he asked Clint.

Laughing, the blonde archer sat next to Sam and said, “Nah. I don’t bet on a sure thing.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Sam asked curiously.

“Do you want to watch the game, Buck? You and I could do something else if you’d rather not,” Steve offered.

Thinking for a moment, Bucky realized that it had been quite some time since he watched a ball game. It was even longer ago that he had done so with others.

“Uh...yeah...I’d like to watch the game,” he confessed quietly.

“Well, come on then!” said Steve as he put his arm around Bucky’s shoulders and guided his friend to the living room. Smiling, he suggested, “Let’s sit on the floor like we did when we were kids.”

Bucky was touched that Steve remembered something that they shared so long ago – something that meant a lot to both of them.

“Sure!” he agreed cheerfully.

As the game got underway, the cheers and taunts grew louder until they could be heard throughout the living quarters.

“Ah, man! Defense...DEFENSE!” Sam yelled at the TV when the New York Knicks allowed the Boston Celtics to score.

Steve and Clint joined in on the spectator coaching, but Bucky merely smiled and occasionally laughed at their antics.

In her bedroom, Wanda continued to read “The Girl from Everywhere” by Heidi Heilig and tried to relate to its young heroine.

Next door, Natasha sat at her desk and scoured through information that she pulled up on her laptop concerning a Russian diplomat who might have some shady dealings with the Latverian monarch Victor Von Doom. As she searched for more information, she suddenly came upon a partially redacted document that described a masked assailant with a metal arm who fled the scene after a Russian politico was shot.

“Oh, dear God!” she whispered in horror. Realizing that the file was describing an assassination carried out by the Winter Soldier, she saved the file under an innocuous name and hid it in a subfolder. She knew that she could never share with Bucky or anyone else details of the data that she found – not even if it helped to piece together the events of Bucky’s shattered life. She took a few moments to try to clear her mind of what she had just read before continuing her research.

As the evening turned into night, the noise of the rambunctious Avengers still drifted from the living room down the hallway and finally became too difficult for Natasha to continue to ignore.

“Really, guys? You sound like a frat house,” she scolded as she walked through the living room en route to the kitchen to fill a small pitcher with filtered water. She was glad to see that Bucky appeared to be enjoying himself although he was sitting slightly apart from the other three men and remained silent.

Leaning forward with his elbows resting on his knees, his large eyes were glued to the TV taking in all the action of the game.

She began to wonder if any of them had heard her.

“Sorry, Nat. The game’s almost over,” Steve finally said to her.

“With that kind of overstimulation, nobody’s going to sleep tonight,” she predicted.

None of the men immediately responded as they were engrossed in the game.

“Good night, fellas!” she called over the chatter, which was met with no reply. Then, just as she turned to leave, Bucky smiled at her and winked. In return, she blew him a kiss and walked back to her room.

Seeing no light from under Wanda’s door, Natasha assumed that she had retired for the night and thought it was probably time that she did the same. So, she closed her laptop, changed into a blue camisole and matching pajama shorts, and climbed into bed. Reclining, she picked up a folder containing the brief which the Avengers were each given the day before. She began to read it and when the spy became drowsy, she placed the folder on the night stand, turned off the light, and fell asleep.

* * * * * *

An hour had passed since Natasha went to bed. Realizing that his friend had been silent most of the evening, Steve turned to Bucky and asked, “You okay, pal?”

“Yeah, just a bit tired,” he confessed.

“Hey, I guess this is way past your bedtime for you old folks,” Clint teased.

“Wow...hilarious. Never heard that one before,” Bucky deadpanned.

“Let me remind you that we ‘old folks’ can easily beat you two in a foot race,” advised Steve.

“Oh, yeah? Well, I know you can Cap, but I’m not so sure about ‘Sleeping Beauty’ there,” Sam said.

“Well, we can always prove that tomorrow morning,” Steve retorted. “Hey, Buck? You up for a morning run?”

Bucky sat silently staring at the carpet.

“Buck?” Steve asked again.

Realizing that he was being spoken to, Bucky looked at his friend suddenly and asked, “Huh?”

“Tomorrow...the four of us...laps around the compound?”

“‘Four of us’?” yelped Clint. “How’d I get roped into this?”

“It’ll be good for you,” advised Sam. “You’re getting a bit soft around the middle.”

“I am not!” the archer exclaimed as he rubbed his stomach.

“Man, that 6-pack is turning into a 4-pack – especially after all you ate tonight.”

“I did not overeat tonight,” Clint declared defiantly.

Turning to Bucky once more, Steve asked, “So, are you up for it, pal?”

Breaking is concentration again, Bucky looked at each man as if he had never met them before. Then, slowly he agreed. “Yeah...sure,” he said.

“Cool,” Sam replied. “Well, I’m calling it a night.”

“Me too,” said Clint. “I’m taking my hearing aids out, so if anyone needs me – ”

“Yeah, we know the drill – we’ll bang on your door and Friday will flash your lights. Got it,” Sam said over his shoulder as he left the room.

“‘Night, guys,” said Steve as Sam and Clint disappeared down the hall. Looking at Bucky, he said, “I’ll see you in the morning, pal.”

Without smiling, Bucky replied, “Bright and early.”

When Steve extended his open hand to help his friend up from the living room floor, Bucky took it appreciatively.

The two walked quietly until they reached Steve’s room. Across the hall, Bucky placed his hand on Natasha’s door knob and stood looking at Steve across from him.

“Good night, punk,” Steve said with a slight grin. It was something that he said a thousand times when they were younger, but it seemed to feel oddly new to him tonight.

“Good night, jerk,” his friend replied as he always did. Then, Bucky quietly opened Natasha’s door and stepped inside.

As the spy slept, the soldier silently removed all of his clothes. Opening one of her drawers, he removed a pair of Barnes tartan pajama bottoms, stepped into them, and slid under the covers without disturbing the red head. At first, he found it difficult to relax but eventually drifted off to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky causes turmoil in the Avengers’ compound.

The first indication Natasha had that something was awry was when she heard a soft moaning next to her in bed. Without opening her eyes, she turned her head slightly at first thinking that she was dreaming. As the moaning continued, she realized that the sound was coming from Bucky.

She glanced at the digital clock on her nightstand and saw that the glowing numbers read 3:15 a.m. Reaching over, she turned on the light on her nightstand.

As she rolled over and placed her right hand on Bucky’s sweaty chest, she said, “James?” quietly at first not wanting to startle him.

When he moaned again – louder this time – she again tried to wake him.

“James,” she said giving him a slight shake.

“NOOO!” he suddenly screamed in terror, waking the rest of the sleeping Avengers.

“James, it’s okay! It’s just a dream,” Natasha said trying to soothe him.

Just then, the door burst open as the other Avengers gathered in her room.

“What happened?” Steve asked anxiously.

“It’s okay...he just had a nightmare,” Natasha replied trying to convince everyone that it was not that bad even though she suspected otherwise.

Steve knelt next to the bed and placed his right hand on Bucky’s metal left shoulder.

“Buck, do you know where you are?” he asked.

Without looking at him, Bucky slowly nodded his head.

“You’re okay, pal. We’re here for you,” he consoled his friend. Looking at Natasha sitting on the other side of the bed, he said, “Nat, get him some water.”

As she turned and began to pour water into a glass from the pitcher on her nightstand, Steve looked at Clint standing in the doorway.

“Clint,” Steve said nodding his head once at Wanda.

Understanding him, Clint said, “Come on, Wanda. Let’s get you back to bed,” as he led the teen from Natasha’s room.

“Will Sergeant Bucky be all right?” she asked curiously as the soldier lay on his back panting while staring at the ceiling.

“Yeah, he’ll be fine,” he assured her.

“I can help him. I can clear his mind,” she offered.

“No, no. He’s okay. You go back to sleep and we’ll see you in the morning,” the archer urged her.

Returning to Natasha’s room, Clint nodded at Steve to let him know that Wanda was back in her bedroom. He then watched as Steve and Natasha did what they could to comfort Bucky.

Steve slipped his right arm behind Bucky’s back and sat him up slightly so that Natasha could slide another pillow behind the soldier.

“Come on. Drink some water, pal,” Steve urged his friend as he held the glass to his lips.

Bucky slowly took a few sips as he stared at the opposite wall.

Natasha went to her bathroom and returned with two damp face cloths. She folded one in half and placed it on Bucky’s forehead. She laid the other open on his sweaty chest and continued to speak to him in loving tones.

“Sssshh...it’s all right. It was just a bad dream. You’re okay,” she said just above a whisper.

“Guys, could you give us some room, please?” Steve bade Clint and Sam not wanting his friend to be stared at.

“Sure, Cap,” Sam agreed.

As he and Clint turned to leave, Sam offered, “If you need anything – ”

“Thanks,” Steve interrupted sounding less grateful than he really was.

Slowly, Bucky began to blink his eyes and emerge from his trancelike state. He looked around the room and saw Natasha on his right sitting next to him in bed and Steve still kneeling on the floor to his left. He breathed heavily as he replayed the last part of his dream again in his head.

“Uh...I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” he mumbled.

“Don’t apologize. We’re here for you, pal,” Steve assured him.

“It always seems so real,” Bucky said breathlessly.

“You’re with us. You’re safe,” Natasha promised.

* * * * * *

Outside in the hallway, Sam asked Clint, “You heard him scream without your hearing aids?”

“I actually hadn’t removed them yet,” Clint remarked. “Man, I wonder how often that happens.”

“Once is too often, if you ask me,” Sam replied. “I wonder if he’d let me help – see if some counseling would do him any good.”

“I doubt that guy would want to lie on a couch and spill his guts to you or anyone else.”

“It’d be worth a try, wouldn’t? I counsel veterans suffering from PTSD, but I had no idea it was this bad,” confessed Sam. “I mean, it must be hell for him. Can you imagine?”

“No, I can’t and I’m afraid for Nat. She shouldn’t be exposed to that,” Clint hissed.

“Look, Clint. Nat can – ”

“Nat can what – handle it? She shouldn’t have to handle it! That guy is dangerous. Who knows what he’s capable of!”

“I’m sure Steve has the situation under control,” Sam assured him unconvincingly.

“Right, and what happens when Steve’s not around? What happens when Steve isn’t there to calm him down? Nat’s in danger – that’s what happens,” Clint snapped.

Realizing that there was no swaying him, Sam suggested, “Look, man. Let’s just get some sleep, and we can talk to Steve about it in the morning.”

The two Avengers stared at each other for a long moment. Finally, Clint sighed heavily and turned toward his bedroom door.

With his back to Sam, Clint heard his friend open his door and close it behind him. Alone in the hallway, Clint stood for a moment thinking things over before he entered his own room and sat on the edge of his bed.

“Friday?” he said.

“Yes, Agent Barton?”

“Turn on alert mode, please.”

“Activated, Agent Barton.”

After he climbed into bed, Clint removed his hearing aids and placed them on his nightstand. With Friday’s alert mode activated, the lights in his room would flash and his bed would gently vibrate to wake him if there was an emergency or if a fellow Avenger knocked at his door.

As he drifted off to sleep, Clint admitted that like Bucky, he also had a traumatic past – one that caused his hearing loss. Every now and then, the archer had a nightmare about his youth and how his alcoholic father had beaten him and his brother. He recalled how the brutal blows to his head had left him partially deaf. Most people did not know this about his past, and he preferred to keep it that way. However, it began to worry him that being around Bucky when he is in an uncontrollable state might put Natasha in a similarly vulnerable situation that he was in as a child.

* * * * * *

Across the hall, Sam lay in the dark pondering all that had transpired from Bucky and Natasha’s arrival at the compound until the soldier’s nightmare and outburst. He knew that Bucky was suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, but he had never witnessed one of his episodes before.

“He must hide it well enough,” he thought and felt confident that he could help his fellow soldier if only Bucky would let him. Feeling guilty about his previous exchanges with the former assassin, Sam vowed that he would make a fresh start of things later that morning.

* * * * * *

Back in Natasha’s room, Steve felt hopeful about Bucky’s condition.

“You feeling better, Buck?” he asked.

His friend nodded and smiled half-heartedly as Natasha gently stroked his right arm.

“Well, I’ll let you get some rest now. I’m right across the hall if you need me,” advised Steve as he stood and placed his right hand on Bucky’s left shoulder momentarily. “‘Night, you two.”

“Goodnight, Steve...and thanks,” Natasha said earnestly as she removed the towels from Bucky’s forehead and chest and then laid them on her nightstand.

“Don’t mention it,” he remarked as he closed her bedroom door behind him.

Natasha studied Bucky’s face before speaking.

“I’m sorry about the dream, love. You should try to get some rest.”

“...Yeah,” he replied distantly.

Wanting to make him feel safe, she left the light on her nightstand burning. She then rested her head on his chest and listened to his heart beat as they slowly went back to sleep.

* * * * * *

An hour later, Bucky stirred. His stomach growled loudly, and he felt an emptiness in it as if he had not eaten in days.

Rising to sit on the edge of the bed, he felt his left thigh and rubbed a bruise that had mysteriously formed there. In the darkened room, he glanced over his shoulder at Natasha and not wanting to wake her, he quietly stood, walked over to open the door, and stepped into the hallway.

As he strode barefoot toward the kitchen, Bucky could see a dim light ahead of him and became cautious.

When he reached the kitchen, he saw that the refrigerator door was open and Clint was squatting as he looked inside mumbling to himself. On the counter, Bucky eyed a white plate on which rested a large sandwich that the archer had constructed.

“What the hell is this?” Clint wondered quietly as he shook a small jar. “Did Sam eat all the pickles again?”

Standing there in nothing but his Barnes tartan pajama bottoms, Bucky folded his arms and leaned against the island in the center of the kitchen as he silently watched the archer continue to poke around in the refrigerator.

After a few moments, Clint gave up on finding the pickles. As he rose, he suddenly realized he was not alone.

“Holy crap, man! What the hell are you doing sneaking up on me like that?”

Staring at him, Bucky replied, “I didn’t sneak up on you, Clint. I’ve been standing here for over 5 minutes while you let all the cold out of the fridge.”

“What?” he asked straining to hear.

Realizing that the archer was not wearing his hearing aids, Bucky spoke more succinctly so that Clint could read his lips.

“Close the door,” Bucky said slowly as he gave it a push. The two stood facing each other in the soft glow of a small monitor on the outside of the refrigerator door.

“Geez, man. You’re so freaking creepy,” Clint sneered as Bucky stared at him with his piercing light blue eyes.

Combining sign language with gestures to act out what he was saying, Bucky asked, “Are you eating all that before you run?”

“I’m hungry and by the way, I didn’t agree to run this morning. Sam volunteered me,” Clint replied.

Bucky rolled his eyes and shook his head from side to side. He picked up a large red apple from a bowl on the counter and bit into the fruit as he watched Clint take a bite out of the sandwich.

“Don’t judge me,” the archer advised with a full mouth. He then picked up the plate and walked out of the kitchen heading back to his room.

When Bucky finished his apple, he tossed the core into a trash can and left the kitchen.

Returning to Natasha’s room, he sat on the edge of her bed. He once again rubbed the bruise that had oddly appeared on his left thigh. Then, resting his elbows on his knees, he stared at the floor. Twenty minutes later, he heard Natasha stir and glanced at her over his left shoulder.

Lying down next to her, he did not go back to sleep. Instead, he lay there with his large blue eyes staring at the ceiling. Soon, Bucky could tell that the sun was rising and was conflicted about whether he would go running with the male Avengers. Finally, he rose from the bed and walked to the bathroom. As he washed, he tried to prepare himself for facing the rest of the team after the turmoil of the previous night. He soon returned to the bedroom and reluctantly began to dress. When he was finished, he sighed heavily. Emotionally, he was not feeling up to it, but he did not want to let Steve down.

It was 5:30 and the compound was still quiet. Wearing a black sweatshirt and matching sweatpants, Bucky thought, ‘I need to warm up.’ Walking to the middle of the dim living room, he got down on the carpet and started stretching.

After a count of 100, he heard footsteps approaching and saw Steve and Sam as they entered the room dressed in t-shirts and sweatpants.

“Hey, Buck! I’m glad you’ll be joining us,” Steve chirped as Bucky continued with his stretches.

“What a show-off,” Clint mumbled as he joined them, but not quiet enough that Bucky did not hear him.

Looking up at the archer, Bucky asked, “Are you sure you’re up for this after that big midnight snack?”

While Steve and Sam looked at Clint curiously, the archer narrowed his eyes at the former assassin.

Not long after Bucky left her room, Natasha had risen, washed, and stepped out into the hallway. Now entering the kitchen, she was dressed in red athletic shoes, black leggings, and Bucky’s black t-shirt which read BROOKLYN in large white letters.

Watching her pour a glass of orange juice, Steve said, “Good morning, Nat! This is kind of early for you. Did you get any sleep last night?”

“Uh...sort of...” she replied quietly before taking a sip of the juice. She avoided making eye contact with him.

In his light blue t-shirt and navy sweat pants, Steve studied her face carefully.

“You look exhausted,” he observed. When he saw her holding her left side, he asked, “Are you all right?”

Natasha finally looked at him with her tired green eyes.

“Steve, after James’ nightmare – after he settled down and went back to sleep – he did something strange,” she whispered.

“Morning, Nat!” Sam said as he entered the kitchen and began to pour a glass of milk.

“Morning,” she replied not looking at him.

Realizing that she felt uncomfortable talking around the others, Steve suggested, “Come with me.”

Natasha put down her glass and followed him to his room.

Just then, Bucky looked up in time to see her disappear down the hallway with Steve. Rising, he slowly followed and watched as she entered Steve’s bedroom and he closed the door behind them.

Not sure what to think of it, Bucky entered Natasha’s room and sat on the edge of her desk.

‘It’s just Avengers’ stuff,’ he tried to convince himself. Nonetheless, he could not help but wonder what their private meeting could be about.

“So, what were you going to say in the kitchen, Nat?” Steve asked with growing concern.

“Well, after his nightmare, James settled down and we went back to sleep. Eventually, we rolled over and he spooned me like he usually does,” she began.

“But you said he did something odd?”

“Yeah, he put his left arm around my waist and held me tight,” she explained.

Steve looked confused.

“That’s odd?” Steve wondered.

“At some point, I tried to get up and he wouldn’t let go. The more I squirmed trying to pull away, the tighter he squeezed me.”

“I’m sorry, Nat. I hope he didn’t hurt you.”

Natasha slowly lifted the t-shirt and revealed her left side which now bore a horizontal bruise along her ribs.

“Good lord, Nat!” Steve exclaimed in shock. “Bucky did that?”

“I just couldn’t get out of his grip. I thought he would crush my ribs.”

“How did you get him off of you?” asked Steve staring at the bruise.

“I finally jabbed my knuckles into his left thigh. He groaned and rolled over.”

Looking quite stern, Steve advised, “Nat, you’ve got to tell him.”

“No! I don’t want him to know. He feels guilty about enough things,” she declared.

Insisting, Steve urged her, “He could have broken your ribs last night, Nat. He needs to know!”

“James went through enough last night having that nightmare,” she said. “I’m not going to make him feel even worse by telling him about this. We’re all he’s got – you and me. If he finds out about this, he might go back into hiding, and I don’t want that. Neither do you. Please, just let me handle this my way, Steve,” she begged.

Giving it a moment of thought, Steve relented.

“Okay, Nat. But if I find out it happened again...”

“You’ll do nothing, or I’ll quit the Avengers and never speak to you again,” she said as she turned and opened Steve’s door.

“All right,” he finally agreed.

On his way back to his room, Clint passed Steve and Natasha in the hallway. As Steve continued to the kitchen, Clint grabbed Natasha’s arm and pulled her aside.

“Nat, about last night...does that happen a lot?” he wondered curiously.

“...No,” she said after a pause.

“Why am I not convinced?”

“Only once every week or so,” she replied lowering her voice. As soon as she spoke, she regretted it.

“Only?” Clint asked in dismay.

“Look, I’ve got it under control,” Natasha growled through clenched teeth before turning to walk away.

“I swear, Nat, if he does anything to hurt you – ”

“Just stop it, Clint!” she demanded without turning around. “I said I can handle it.”

When she returned to the kitchen, she saw that Steve and Sam were in the living room and had begun to stretch in preparation for their run.

“Where is everybody?” Sam asked Steve. “I thought we were going to do this. Now, Clint and Barnes are gone.”

“I’m here,” replied Clint as he entered the living room glaring at Natasha.

“I’ll go look for James,” offered Natasha with a shrug.

Returning to her room, Natasha opened the door and found Bucky standing with his arms folded in front of her window staring out at the grounds of the compound.

“Good morning, James. The fellas are waiting for you.”

“I’m sorry about las night. I’m sorry about every night,” he replied without turning to face her.

“James, everyone understands. It’s not your fault.”

“I upset you and Steve the most,” he remarked as he thought about seeing her enter Steve’s room not long ago.

Walking over to him, she wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head against his muscular back.

“You seek redemption and want people to forgive you, but you won’t forgive yourself, James.”

“Maybe that’s because what I did is unforgiveable,” he lamented.

Natasha turned him to face her and placed her hands on his chest.

“What you did as an assassin for Hydra was against your will. We all know that and understand. Don’t be so hard on yourself, James. Come on. The guys are waiting for you.”

Bucky studied her face for a few moments finding reassurance in her green eyes.

“Well...” he said still considering it.

“You can’t stay in here all day. Come, we’ll face them together,” offered Natasha.

Bucky leaned down and gently kissed her on the forehead. He allowed her to take him by the hand and lead him to the door and into the hallway.

As the two entered the living room, Clint sniped, “Old man, get your ass outside so I can run rings around you!”

“Yeah!” Sam yelped clapping his hands together. “Let’s do this!”

“Wait, don’t you want to stretch some more to give yourselves a fighting chance?” Steve asked with a laugh.

“Nah, man. We don’t need to waste time stretching,” advised Clint.

“Okay, then...shall we?” Steve suggested as he started walking toward the elevator.

“You coming, Nat?” asked Sam.

“If it’s all the same to you boys, I think I’ll watch this fiasco from the balcony,” she remarked with a smirk.

Once on the ground floor, the four men lined up side by side.

“Maybe we should give you guys a few laps’ head start,” Steve politely offered.

“To hell with that!” Bucky snapped. “If these guys want to talk trash, let ‘em show us what they’ve got.”

“Okay, player. Run! Start running right now,” taunted Sam.

“Guys?” bade Steve.

“Okay!” Bucky replied and then sprinted away.

“Hey! Nobody said we were starting,” protested Clint as he dashed off behind him.

“Well?” asked Steve looking at Sam.

Sam shrugged and then he and Steve began to jog in the direction in which Bucky and Clint ran.

Halfway into the first lap, Steve passed Clint and Sam and caught up with Bucky.

Looking at his best friend, Bucky could tell that Steve was holding back.

“You don’t have to keep pace with me, pal. Knock yourself out,” he suggested with a sly smile.

Grinning shyly, Steve replied, “Thanks, Buck,” before increasing his speed and pulling away from him.

By the time Steve completed 14 laps around the large compound, Bucky had done 11, Sam 6, and Clint 4. He came to a stop when he saw the other men standing bent over with their hands on their knees.

“Are you guys quitting already?” Steve asked barely panting.

“When I get my second wind, I guess I could go for a few more laps,” Bucky replied as he caught his breath.

“Not me, brother,” said Clint as he stood upright and slowly strode toward the compound.

“Yeah, that’s enough for one morning,” Sam agreed.

“Beaten by a couple of 100-year-old men, huh?” Bucky taunted as Sam limped past him.

“I still hate you,” he said not looking back.

Cocking his head toward the compound, Steve offered, “Come on, Buck. I’ll make us breakfast.”

“Sounds good to me,” his friend agreed.

* * * * * *

The men showered after their run and Steve was the first to make it to the kitchen. It was now 7:30, and he had become quite hungry from the morning exercise.

Joining him with his neck length dark hair still slightly damp, Bucky asked, “Hey, Steve? Have you seen Nat?”

“Yeah, she went to go see if Wanda’s up.”

“My ears must have been burning,” Natasha said as she walked up behind Bucky with Wanda at her side.

“What does that mean – your ‘ears are burning,’” she asked curiously.

“It’s an American expression,” Natasha replied.

“They say if your ears burn, it means that someone is talking about you in your absence,” Steve clarified.

Trying to visualize a person’s ears burning, Wanda remarked, “What a strange thing to say.”

“American’s say a lot of strange things,” Natasha advised.

Entering the kitchen, Sam pulled a few coffee cups from a cabinet and placed them on the counter. Then, looking at Bucky, he smirked.

“So, you kicked my butt this morning, player. You ought to be exhausted by now.”

The comment took Bucky aback. Not missing a beat, he smiled and quipped, “Nope. There’s more where that came from, pal.”

Sam threw his head back, laughed heartily, and remarked, “Okay...so, it sounds like a ‘do over’ is in order.”

“Just name the place and time, man,” Bucky replied.

“Leave me out of it,” Clint warned as he joined the others.

Just then, Bucky walked over to pour himself a cup from the coffee maker. As he took a sip, Clint gave a sudden warning.

“Hey! Don’t drink that! Thor made it,” he yelped.

Bucky immediately spat out the coffee spraying Sam head to waist.

The kitchen fell silent as the Avengers looked in shock at Bucky and then at Sam and back again.

“I was just kidding. Thor ain’t here,” Clint confessed with a snort.

Looking at Sam woefully, Bucky said, “Oh, man. I am sooo sorry,” and handed him a hand towel.

“I guess I need to go change,” Sam said as she glared at Clint. “When I get back, I’m gonna kill you.”

“Sorry, Sam,” the archer said regretting the prank.

As Sam left the kitchen, Bucky turned to Natasha and frowned.

“Real smart, Clint” she scolded.

“Well, how did I know that would happen?” he objected.

Steve sighed and shook his head from side to side.

All of a sudden, the small flat screen on the kitchen wall turned on and Tony Stark’s face dominated the screen.

“Avengers, assemble! Cap, are you there?” he asked authoritatively.

Steve walked over and stood in front of the screen so that he was in frame with the two-way camera.

“I’m here, Tony,” he replied.

Instinctively, Bucky quickly stepped to his right and stood with his back against the wall next to the screen. He took a deep breath and held it.

Tony’s face took on a strange expression as he peered curiously into the camera on his end.

He thought for a moment with his mouth ajar and then queried, “Did I just see...Barnes?”

Attempting to get Tony back on topic, Steve asked,” You have some news for us, Tony?”

Relieved to have the attention drawn away from himself, Bucky finally exhaled.

After a moment, Tony continued all the while staring at the side of the monitor where he thought he saw the former assassin.

“Rhodey and I wrapped up our investigation here in Washington and couldn’t find anything crooked about Protecticon Industries. It seems to be on the level, so it looks like our info on this was wrong.”

Still standing to the side of the screen, Bucky slowly shook his head from left to right.

Natasha, Wanda, Steve, and Clint stared at Bucky curiously for a moment.

Following their line of sight, Tony asked, “Okay, what am I missing?”

Looking at his friend, Steve cocked his head toward the monitor to encourage him to speak.

Again, Bucky slowly shook his head.

“Cap?” Tony asked sternly.

Steve frowned at Bucky which finally prompted the soldier to step forward so that Tony could see him.

“Your intel wasn’t wrong,” he advised.

“Barnes! So, it is you. And what makes you say that, Sergeant?” Tony asked smugly as he was unaccustomed to being disagreed with.

“For weeks, I’ve been keeping an eye on Protecticon and through some...creative hacking...I found out that it’s one of Justin Hammer’s many shell companies,” Bucky concluded without looking at the screen.

Everyone was quiet while Tony considered what Bucky just said.

“And why should we believe you?” he eventually asked.

He and Bucky stared at each other for a few moments before Bucky finally replied.

“Because you’d be making a huge mistake if you don’t.”

“Well, maybe we’re willing to take that risk,” Tony quipped.

Bucky shrugged his shoulders and replied, “It’s your call.”

To his left, a voice off-screen said, “Tony...”

The other Avengers knew it was the voice of Tony’s best friend, Lieutenant Colonel James Rhodes.

‘Perhaps Rhodey can persuade Tony to listen to Buck,’ Steve thought.

Speaking up, Steve finally said, “Bucky is an expert at intel. He’s elite. During the war, the government trusted him implicitly, and I trust his analysis and judgment at well.”

“Cap, my intel doesn’t support your war buddy’s findings,” Tony stated flatly.

“Well, maybe your trip won’t seem so wasted if you listen to him,” urged Steve.

Tony was silent as he thought for a few moments. “Fine,” he reluctantly said. “Walk Friday through the info that you found.”

With a sharp laugh, Bucky replied, “No way I’m giving you my trade secrets.”

“Then show me!” Tony snapped losing his patience.

Bucky walked over to the laptop on the desk in the commons area and brought it to the kitchen. Laying it on the island in the middle of kitchen, he logged into a secure server and hacked into Protecticon’s intranet. Within a few moments, Bucky had located secret files which showed a direct link between Protecticon and Hammer Enterprises. Bucky turned the laptop around so that the screen faced the monitor.

“Friday?” Tony called.

“Yes, boss?” the Artificial Intelligence assistant asked.

“Enlarge, please,” Tony requested.

Friday zoomed in on screen and enlarged it so that Tony could read the files that Bucky accessed.

Stepping into the frame, Rhodes joined Tony to read the intel that Bucky produced. After a moment of reading, Rhodes stared at his friend waiting for Tony’s response.

Eventually, Tony remarked, “Well...this should prove useful. It looks like Rhodey and I will be in Washington a bit longer than expected. We’ll be in touch.”

“Tony?” Steve said annoyed that he did not thank Bucky.

“Nice work, Barnes,” he said and then signed off before the soldier could respond.

“That’s as close to a ‘thank you’ as you’re going to get,” Natasha advised.

She knew as well as Steve did that Bucky was not interested in a “thank you” – least of all from Tony Stark. He simply wished to do the right thing and help when he could.

Just then, Sam returned and looking around the kitchen at everyone still facing the monitor, he asked, “What did I miss?”

Clint let out a sharp laugh and then offered, “Come on, man. Let’s set the table while I bring you up to speed.”

Turning to his friend, Steve stated, “That was great sleuthing, pal. If we move on this Protecticon thing, I want you on board.”

“Isn’t that up to Stark?” Bucky asked skeptically.

“Tony needs to set aside personal issues and work on the task at hand,” Steve advised.

“That’s easier said than done, pal,” remarked Bucky.

“It’s not impossible,” he assured his friend feeling certain that he could talk Tony into allowing Bucky to collaborate with the Avengers if there turned out to be a mission.

“We better eat in case Tony ends up needing us,” Natasha advised as she handed Steve a carton of eggs.

The Avengers finished cooking and then sat down to eat. Passing plates and platters of food back and forth, they chatted and chided each other while enjoying a hearty breakfast. When they were done, Bucky and Wanda collected the plates and loaded them into the dishwasher while the others finished their coffee.

When the monitors in the commons suddenly flashed on, the group was not surprised to see Tony’s face again.

“Avengers, assemble!” he called looking somewhat frazzled.

“What’s up, Tony? Are we moving on Protecticon already?” Steve asked as he stood and walked to the large screen in the living room.

“No decision on that yet, Cap, but we have another situation. There’s word of aggressive behavior from Latveria. Its leader, Victor von Doom, is attending a trade summit in Vienna and took offense to accusations from the president of Sokovia. Von Doom ordered missiles to be pointed at Sokovia. Rhodey and I are headed to Vienna. We need an immediate Avengers presence in Sokovia.” Pausing, he looked at the teen standing next to Steve and said, “Sorry, Wanda.”

Looking at the girl, Steve urged, “You should sit this one out.”

“No! Sokovia is my country – my home. I need to fight for her.”

Steve thought is was a bad idea but knew there would be no swaying her. “Avengers en route,” he informed Tony.

Turning to his best friend, Steve did not know what to say. It seemed odd to leave him behind at the compound, but Bucky was not a full-fledged member of the team.

Just as Steve was about to apologize to him, Tony spoke.

“Barnes, you have extensive knowledge on the activities of Von Doom. We need you to work with Friday on profiling him – what he’s done in the past and might do...how likely he is to follow through on threats – things of that nature...”

Bucky and Steve both tried to cover their shock at Tony’s inclusion of the soldier.

“Uh...yeah. Yeah, I’m on it,” Bucky agreed.

“You can use my office,” Steve offered as he put his left hand on Bucky’s right shoulder.

“Let’s get moving, people!” Tony bellowed trying to act as if he were not uncomfortable about including the soldier.

“We’ll be in touch, pal!” Steve yelled over his shoulder as he and the other Avengers prepared to board a quinjet.

Sitting down at Steve’s desk, Bucky launched his friend’s computer and accessed a database of intel on Latveria.

“Friday?” he said.

“Yes, Sergeant Barnes?” the AI assistant asked.

“Run all possible scenarios and threat assessments on Latveria.”

“Yes, Sergeant!”

“Oh...and Friday...?”

“Yes, Sergeant?”

“Try to keep up.”

**Author's Note:**

> © 2018 Planet Press
> 
> The Marvel characters herein are the property of Marvel Comics which retains the rights.


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